Suction cleaner



Allg- 5, 1941 D. G. sMl-:LLIE 2,251,899

sAUcTIoN CLEANER Filed Nov. 28, 195B ATTORNEY INVENTOR ana/a/ 6. Sme/lie.

Patente-d Aug. 5, 1941 vSUCTION CLEANER Donald G. Smellie, Canton, Ohio, assignor to The Hoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application November 28, 1938, Serial No. 242,711

' Claims.

The present invention relates to suction cleaners in general and in particular to a new and novel agitator for a suction cleaner. More specically the invention comprises a rotary agitator for a suction cleaner provided with positive agitating and brushing means, the latter being formed of helically disposed brush tufts individually pivoted. The cleaner agitator constructed in accordance with the present invention is also improved in the arrangement of beating and brushing elements which are so designed that maximum effectiveness is provided by a structure including fewer elements.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved suction cleaner. It is another object of the invention to provide a new and improved suction cleaner rotary agitator. A further object of the invention is to provide a rotary agitator provided with helically arranged pivoted brush elements. Still another object of the invention is to provide a rotary agitator for a suction cleaner in which brush elements are helically arranged and the individual tufts thereof are individually pivoted about helically extending axes. A further object of the invention is to provide a rotary agitator for a suction cleaner in which greater brush life is insured by the presence of great flexibility and movement in the bristle elements which however are suiiciently long to sweep bare floors. Another object of the invention is to provide a rotary agitator for a suction cleaner in which helically disposed brush elements are aligned with helically dis posed rigid beating elements.A These and other more specific objects will appear upon reading the following specification and claims and upon considering in connection therewith the attached drawing.

Referring now to the drawing- Figure 1 illustrates a side elevation of a modern suction cleaner incorporating the present invention, certain parts being vbroken away to show the agitator, the suction-creating means, and they power-transmitting means positioned within the cleaner casing;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the agitator constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 3 is a partial longitudinal section y through the agitator along the helically extending brush elements;

Figure 4 is a transverse section upon the line 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a transverse section upon the line 5-5 of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a sectional view illustrating thev ing the covering pile and by dislodging any ma-I terial adhering to the top of the surface covering. The brush elements of the usual agitator have a radial extension substantially equal to that of the rigid beater elements and the surface-contacting orbits of the two elements are substantially of equal diameter.

It is desirable in good agitator design that the bristle elements have as great a length as pos-- sible. The greater the length of the brush bristle, the greater is the permitted flexing thereof and with great flexing greater brush life is possible. In the agitator constructed in accordance with the present invention the brush bristles have their effective lengths increased as tlr'e brush elements are individually pivoted.

This pivotal mounting of the brush also makes possible a bristle length which permits the brush tor sweep bare floors when the cleaner is passed thereover, the dislodged material being carried away by the cleaning air drawn into the cleaner. No claim is made in the. present case to the broad .invention of a floor-sweeping agitator which invention insteadl is set forth and claimed in a co-pending patent application Serial No. 242,714 in the name of Howard Earl Hoover.

An additional advantage of the cleaner constructed in accordance with the present invention is that the brush elements are aligned with the rigid beating elements and the beating elements and brush elements are so arranged upon the cleaner body that each portion of surface covering undergoing cleaning is contacted by both beating elements and brush elements.

Referring again to the drawing a modern suction cleaner is illustrated comprising a main casing having'a nozzle I, a. fa chamber 2 and an exhaust outlet 3. An air pa ing lips 5 and 6, traverses the air passageway 4 sageway 4 connects vthe nozzle I to the fan chamber 2. Cleaning air enters the nozzle I between the surface-contactandenters the fan chamber 2 under the action Aof the suction-,creating fan v1. The air is exhausted through theexhaust outlet into the dust bag 8 which is'removably secured thereto by manually operable means 9. I

The suction-creating fan 1 is driven by an unshown motor positioned Within the motor casing I 0, shaft II of which extends into the air Ipassageway 4 where it is formed as a pulley I2. `A power-transmitting belt I3v extends' forwardly from this pulley I2 toidrive an agitator, indicated generally by the reference 'character I4, which is positioned within the nozzle I This agitator will hereinafter be fully described.

The cleaner is movably supported upon front Wheels, one ofWhich is indicated by the reference character I6, `and byrear Wheels, one of which is indicated by the reference character I1. Noz-` zle height adjusting means I8 are provided by which the nozzle can be raised and lowered-to vary the contact of the' lips 5 and 6 and the agitator I4 with a surface covering undergoing cleaning. As in the usual suction cleaner a pivoted handle I9 is provided by which the operator I' may propel the machine over a supporting surface.

Referring now to Figures 2 to '1, inclusive, the rotary agitator constructed in accordance .with the. present invention is clearly illustrated. A cylindrical -body 20 is formedsubstantially midway of its length with a reduced portion 2I Whichv -actsas a pulley and seats the power-transmitting upon the end of shaft 24 and overlies the end plate 22 and Abody 20 to provide protection for the bearing 23 against foreign material.

Helically extending rigid beater bars 28, 28 are l mounted upon the surface of cylindrical body 20 and extend thereabove. Each bar 28 extends one-half of the agitator length, that is, from one f end thereof to the centrally located pulley, and

the bars arepositioned upon opposite halves of the agitator.

Aligned with each beater element 28- and forming in eiTect an 'extension thereof upon the. opposite side of the centrally located pulley is a brush unit'comprising a s eries of pivoted brush elements`30, 30, etc. carried by a removable back. Each brush element. comprises' a exible brush tuft 30 which is carried by and stapled in a tuft seat -3I. Each tuft seat 3| is bifurcated at its lower end and the brush elements of theehtire series .is pivotally mounted upon a helically extending Wire 33 which functions as the pivotal axes. for the individual elements. 1 The wire or agitator construction in accordance with the vpresent invention, when the cleaner is passed over a. surface covering the vsuction created Within the nozzle I by the suction-creating fan 1 causes the surface covering to be lifted upwardly into contact with the front and rear lips 5 and 6. The rotating agitator causes vthe beater elements 28, 28 to contact the lifted surface covering and to vibrate it to dislodge'therefrom the embedded foreign matter. The pivoted brush tufts are rotated and upon contact with the surface covering each is iiexed and pivoted from its radial position which it assumes under the action of centrifugal force, theangular or flexed positions being as shown in dotted lines in Figure 4. Each portion of the surface covering undergoing cleaning is contactedby a beater element and by a brush element and. the surface covering depressions are conveyed from end to end of the agitator by the aligned brush and beater elements.

When the cleaner passes from a surface covering onto a bare floor the pivoted brush elements immediately assume their outermost radial positions and when so positioned they extend through the plane of the nozzle mouth as defined by the lips 5 and 6 and into contact with the supporting iioor, as illustrated in Figure 6, and

as indicated bythe dotted line orbit of the brush rigid beating elements on said agitator extending rod 33 is carried by' longitudinally spaced supports 1 35'mounted upon a brush back 36 which is rel movably secured within the body 20 by manually removable screws 31, 31etc. As is clearly illustrated in the drawing the brush back 36 lies l entirely within the normal contours ofthe agitator body and is formed with diverging side I' `walls which permit the brush elements to pivot upon either side 'of a central position, as indicated ,in dotted .lines in Figure' 4'.- The series "of brush elements and the brush back form a `brush unit which is removable as a unit from the agitator body upon the vrenovm of the securing screws 31, 31, etc. I

, In the operation'of the cleaner embodying an element in Figure 1. Foreign material positioned uponthe bare floor is agitated and theair stream entering the cleaner conveys it to the receptacle thereof.

I claim:

1. A brush -unit for incorporation into a rotary agitator for suction cleaners comprising a rigid back and a series of individually .pivoted helically arranged brush elements mounted on said back upon fixed axes.

2. In a suction cleaner, a nozzle having lips, means to support said lips above a supporting plane, a rotary agitator positioned in said nozzle,

in. rotation substantially into the plane of said nozzle lips, and a radially deiiectible iiexible 'brush element pivoted on said agitator upon a fixed axis and extended below said lips in agitator r otation to contact a bare supporting floor at said supporting plane and adapted to be deected radially by a surface covering.

3. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner comprising a cylindrical body with an agitating-element-receiving recess in its surface, a removable brush unit comprising a back and spirally arranged pivoted brush elements so positioned and arrangedA thereon-as to extend helically relative tothe axis of rotation of said agitator body with said back positioned in said recess, thev pivotal axes of said brushes extending in the direction of the brush helix, and rrmeans releasably securing said back in said recess.

4. In a suction cleaner, af casingadapted to be positioned upon a supporting plane, an agitator including a body mounted for rotation on said casing, a beater element on said body extended radially into a surface covering-contacting position in the rotation of said body, the radial extension of said element being insuii'icient to contact a bare supporting plane, and a radially deiiectible brush element mounted on said body on a fixed axis for pivotal movement and having a radial extensionsuffcientto enable it to contact a bare supportingplane in the rotation of said body, said brush element being adapted to be deected radially by a surface covering in a beatercontacting position. l

5.' In a suction cleaner, a casing adapted .to be positioned upon a supporting plane, an. agitator including a body mounted for rotation on said casing, a beater element on said body extended radially into a surface covering-contacting position in the rotation oi said body, the radial extension of said element being insuicient to contact a bare supporting plane, and a brush elevsaid body, the outer end of said brush element describing an arc which varies in radial distance from the axis or rotation or said body, the portion of said arc at greatest radius from the axis of body rotation intersecting the supporting plane in the rotation of said body, said brush element being adapted to be deflected radially by contact with a surface covering in a beater-con- 10 tacting position. ment pivotally mounted on said body on a ilxed DONALD G. ssamm axis radially spaced from the axis of rotation of' 

